Detective Kirkland and the Case of the Lonesome Ferry Ghost
by Thousnelda
Summary: Arthur Kirkland is a wizard and detective in the city of Hetalia, who often takes bizarre cases. One day he decides to take a normal-sounding case as a favor which quickly turns into anything other. Will he be able to close this case before his friend's cousin becomes the next victim? And why does the other wizard Lukas keep trying to get in his way? Sequel to the other story.
1. Chapter 1

**Disclaimer: I do not own Hetalia **

**So because I enjoyed writing the last one, I decided to use detective Arthur Kirkland in another case. Hope you guys like it XD**

Prologue

Michelle watched as the city quickly blinked into existence in the night from her place aboard the ferry. She was born and raised in a small town on an island off the coast of the mainland, but that was changing now that she was starting high school. Wanting their daughter to have a good education, her parents decided to send her to the city to attend school and live with her cousin Francis Bonnefoy, feeling that the elder would have no problem looking after his favorite cousin. She was excited for the change of pace, she really was, but at that moment she simply wanted to let the night air and the mist from the water drown out all thought of the nearby future.

She then noticed another person look over the rail a little way from her, only he was looking by standing on the rail. Worried that he would fall into the water, she called out a "Hey!" to get his attention.

The person looked over at her shocked before jumping back onto the ferry, allowing her to get a good look at him. He was about her age, perhaps a little older than her, with silvery-white hair and purple eyes. He was also rather pale, which made her wonder if he was sick or something.

Again she called out as she rushed towards him, "Be careful, it looked like you were about to fall over!"

"Um…oh," the boy responded as he looked warily between her and the black water on the other side of the rail.

Michelle smiled slightly at this before saying, "It's okay, just don't need anyone dying or anything. I'm Michelle, what's your name?"

The boy did not respond right away, nor did he shake the hand she offered. At last he asked, "Kids usually don't come on this ferry alone. Are you on this ferry alone?"

"Yup, I'm coming to the city to live with my cousin. He's probably in one of those cars way over there waiting. Are you here alone?" Michelle answered, only to frown slightly as she watched the boy slowly nod his head.

"So then are you meeting up with someone over there too? Any family or anything?" she persisted..

"…My brothers live in the city, but I can't go see them. I'm not allowed to go farther into the town than the harbor," the boy answered sullenly.

"Really? Why's that?"

"Because I can't leave the water."

A cloud of mist suddenly engulfed the boat as the ferryman announced that they were nearing the harbor. The other travelers slowly got out of their seats and grabbed at their bags, all of the excitement and mist causing Michelle to lose sight of the boy. Then as if from all around her she heard him say, "You're nice; most people wouldn't have seen me. Why don't you come visit me again some other night?"

"Just who are you?" she asked, only to quickly look around her to see no one close to her.

**Pretty short, but did it catch anyone's interest?**

**As always, please review~**


	2. Chapter 2

**Disclaimer: I do not own Hetalia**

**since the prologue was pretty short here is an actual chapter to go with it...**

Chapter one

"Michelle, it's the middle of the night! Where in the world have you been?!" A young man called Francis Bonnefoy asked his younger cousin. Michelle was usually a cheerful, typical teenage girl. She liked to play with her friends, cared about her family, and adored her pet fish, but since coming to the city one month ago things had changed. There just seemed to be something wrong with her. Lately, it seemed as if she was distracted and almost depressed. The fact that she never called or told him where she went for these long nights was also growing old for her care-taker.

Michelle ignored the questions her cousin asked and slowly made her way up the stairs to her room; shrugging off her coat in the process. Displeased about being ignored, Francis persisted, "Michelle, this cannot continue! What would your parents think if they knew that you were wandering off to do who knows what? Besides, have you forgotten that you need to be up in…five hours for school? Where have you been anyways?"

Michelle looked at Francis for a moment as if lost in a dream. She then smiled at him and answered, "Around…I don't really remember where. All I remember is that I was with my new friend."

"Your friend? Is she a friend from school?" Francis asked.

Michelle shook her head in response before saying, "No, he always says that he can't go that far into the city. Besides, I can't really imagine him in a classroom."

"Michelle…I don't want you leaving the house to be out this late with some stranger," Francis said sternly.

"But I have to! Night-time is the only time I can see him! And it's not like he's a bad person, just a little mysterious," She answered in such a pleading voice that it almost broke Francis' romantic heart.

"Do you even know who this man is? He could be dangerous. I just don't want to see you hurt, cher, that's all," Francis said trying to be soothing and stern at the same time.

"No…that's part of the charm," she answered with that same lovey-dovey trance-like smile on her face. After saying this, she went upstairs and to bed for the few hours rest before school.

* * *

Francis could not focus as he looked out the window of his store. His mind kept wandering to his conversation with Michelle early that morning, and wondering who it was that the girl was meeting with. He wondered what kind of man this friend of hers was, and why she could only see him late at night. It all made him nervous, a pit forming in his stomach as he thought about it all. A pit which could not be filled until he knew more, but he doubted that he could get the answers out of the girl. An idea then came to him as he watched a certain man walked past the shop, causing him to rush out of the doors and follow him.

Arthur Kirkland, wizard and part-time detective was walking through the business district as he ran his errands; not a care in the world. It was a pleasant fall day, and he was in between cases, so he was planning on having a relaxing day once he reached his house; or at least that was the plan until he heard someone call for him.

Annoyed, he turned around to find his childhood acquaintance Francis following him. With a sigh he stopped and asked, "What do you want know, frog? Don't you have a business to run or something?"

"Yes, but I have something just as important to talk to you about. Can you please come with me back to my shop so we can talk?" Francis asked. Slightly curious, Arthur agreed to meet and soon the two of them were at the shop.

Once in the back room of Francis' store, the two of them sitting comfortably by the table a small table, Arthur asked, "So what is so important?"

"I need your help as a detective," Francis answered bluntly.

"…Okay? What exactly is going on?" Arthur asked, needing more information than that.

"It's my cousin Michelle. I agreed to let her stay with me while she went to school, but ever since she came she's been acting weird and staying out late at night! Then last night when I was asking her questions she started talking about some mysterious boy," Francis explained.

"So what, you want me to follow her? I may be a detective, but I focus on the supernatural, not stalking girls as they sneak out on dates! And I would have thought that you'd be all for her having someone, Mr. Love-is-a-wonderful-thing."

"Look Arthur, I promised her parents that I would keep her safe while she's in this city. And how can I do that while she's off with some strange man who she doesn't even know the name of? Besides, how I see it you owe me a favor from that whole werewolf experience a couple months ago," Francis explained.

"I owe you the favor? If it wasn't for my spell holding him still that werewolf would have torn you limb for limb. You're welcome, by the way," Arthur replied unimpressed.

"But if I didn't lead you and your freaky friends there this whole town could have been overrun with those guys," Francis rebutted, "Look, I know that you don't have a case right now and if it's money you want her parents send me plenty of it for watching her so I can pay you. So will you help me or not?"

Arthur wanted to ask him how he knew that he was currently case-less, but held his tongue for that question. Instead he looked into Francis' pleading eyes and sighed. Arthur then asked, "So do you even know anything about this boy or are you expecting me to start from scratch?"

"So you will take the case? Oh, mon ami, thank you! You have no idea how relieved that makes me," Francis exclaimed, looking as if about to hug the other. He then sat down and continued, "As for the boy, I don't know much about him. Michelle used the word 'mysterious' to explain him to me."

"'Mysterious?'"

"Oui, like if I remember right she said that he can't enter the city and can only meet her at night? What do you think?"

"Very unhelpful," Arthur answered with a frown, his mind already going to multiple ideas. A thought then occurred to him causing him to comment, "You do realize that I don't even know what this Michelle of yours looks like, right?"

"Yes, yes, I suppose that would be helpful…here," Francis replied while handing Arthur a picture of a young brunette with pigtails standing next to Francis. Arthur could not help but admit that the teen was charmingly cute, only to then scold himself for thinking such a thing and hand the picture back. A bell by the door then rang, telling them that a costumer had entered the front of the store; giving Arthur the opportunity to leave and for Francis to get to work while knowing that things with Michelle would be taken care of.

**As always, please review~**


	3. Chapter 3

**Disclaimer: I do not own Hetalia**

Chapter 2

Arthur grumbled to himself as he followed Michelle from a safe distance. It was bad enough that he found himself volunteering to have dinner and the evening with Francis and Michelle, excusing it as the best way to get a better idea of what was happening, but now he was stuck following the girl as she rushed through almost deserted streets to who knew where. After almost half an hour of this and almost losing her twice, he finally realized where she was leading him; the harbor.

The harbor was relatively quiet at that time of night. Many of the workers and such were long gone for the night, leaving only a handful of people who were not all that interested in everyone else. A fog had recently fallen over the murky water below, making it hard for him to pick her out if he fell too far behind. He gulped as he almost walked off a rail-less portion of pier, only to then quickly look around to make sure he did not lose sight of the girl.

To his luck, the girl was still walking on the pier, slower now than before, and occasionally looking at the boats as if for a certain one. After pausing for a moment, she finally walked up to one, an older ferry, and vanished inside. Figuring that this was the place she was meeting with the boy, Arthur began to rush for it only to stop when someone called, "Hey, what are you doing here?"

Arthur cringed as he recognized the voice, only to then turn his head and see a young police officer called Alfred Jones. Alfred had, on several occasions, more or less forced his way into helping Arthur with his cases, and as much of an annoyance the officer could be at times, Arthur had to admit that he had potential. But that did not explain why he was here?

"What are you doing here so late? What, get demoted to a security guard?" Arthur asked back snidely.

"Oh, it's just you," Alfred commented, a look of relief coming over him before continuing, "Nah, I lost a bet with some of the others and now have to do this night shift tonight by myself."

"Ah, I see, well good luck with that," Arthur replied before heading back on his way to the ferry.

"So what are you up to?" Alfred asked as he followed Arthur to the ferry entrance. He frowned as Arthur tried the door, only to then say, "Come on dude, we've been over this, you're trespassing when you just break into places. And this time you don't even have a good reason!"

"Then you can take it up with my current client. Besides, it's not even locked. Now are you going to continue following me or can I get back to work in peace?" Arthur snapped quietly, not wanting his voice to echo through the vessel.

"Right…you do know that that thing's spooky as all hell right? And you expect me to follow you onto it?"

"Spooky? It's just an old ferry boat, it's not even retired! Why would it be spooky?"

"Well, you know, it just is. I mean for starters look at how old it looks! But it's not only that, you know how in the last couple years there's been a lot more people falling over and drowning here at night?" Arthur nodded his head slightly at this, recalling how the harbor seemed a lot safer when he was a child than it did in current years, causing Alfred to continue, "Well I heard from this guy that this ferry has been part of each death. That's just too spooky!"

"So you won't go in because it's spooky. What afraid you'll run into a ghost?" Arthur commented.

"Hey, don't even joke about that! But no, I mean, this seems more like the kind of place teens go to hang out or get drunk or something. 'Course you'd never catch me in there," Alfred answered.

"Well, spooky or not, I still need to go in and continue on my way." Arthur replied as he turned to continue.

"Hey, you never told me what this new case is! I'd know if the force gave you a new one recently," Alfred called out as Arthur began to head up a stairway.

Instead of an answer, however, both of them began to rush out to the back of the boat upon hearing voices from the platform near the back of the boat. Once outside, the two of them looked up to see Michelle sitting precariously on the rail laughing seemingly to herself.

"Hey you, get down here!" Alfred called out to the girl, but she paid no notice. Instead she closed her eyes and leaned towards the deck, as if listening to someone whisper to her, only to then reopen her eyes and fall backwards off the deck.

* * *

"Michelle! Come on, wake up!" Arthur called out as he shook the girl. Slowly, she opened her eyes and looked up at him; confused as to seeing the two men and for being completely wet.

"M-Mr. Kirkland? What are you doing here? And why am I all wet?" Michelle asked, shivering slightly as a cold wind lashed at her drenched body.

"You took a bit of a fall into the water?" Arthur answered while wrapping his jacket around her.

"Really? I don't remember falling. Did you guys then save me? Hey, wait a minute. How come you guys aren't wet?" She asked upon noticing both Arthur and Alfred being completely dry.

"That's um…not of your concern," Arthur coughed out.

"What you need to worry about is why you're out here past curfew," Alfred added, going into a fake, authoritative voice he would sometimes get.

"Oh, well, I was just hanging around with my friend," Michelle meekly answered.

"Really? And where's he?" Arthur asked.

"Up there, see," Michelle answered as she pointed back up at the ferry. The other two followed her finger to the boat, where they saw him; pouting slightly at them. In an instant he disappeared into a poof of fog.

"Well it looks like this case just became a lot more up my alley," Arthur commented, staring intently at the place the boy had been.

"Wait…really?" Alfred asked.

"What are you guys talking about?" Michelle asked, confused about cases.

"Nothing. Now why don't we get you home young lady? Francis will probably have a fit when he see's you anyways. Hey Al, you feel like giving us a lift?" Arthur replied.

"Come on dude, get a car already! Or better yet why don't you just magic her home?"

"Magic?" Michelle asked even more confused now.

"Fine then, I'll take her home while you stay here and make friends with the 'spooky' ship," Arthur answered snidely.

Alfred paused at this before glancing back at the ship and the fog. He then began leading them down to his police car while saying, "Now that I think about it, as a heroic policeman it is my duty to make sure that damsels in distress get home safe; especially this late at night when there's weird, large eye-browed guys and who-knows-what else out prowling. So where should I take you er…Michelle, right?"

"I will give you direction. And don't you dare imply that I'm a prowler again," Arthur snapped as the three of them entered the car.

"So then what should I call someone who stalks teenage girls on foggy nights?" Alfred asked smirking at the other's annoyance.

"I told you I'm on a case," Arthur seethed quietly while glaring daggers at the policeman. A faint blush on his face for even being considered such a person caused Alfred to burst out laughing as he started the car.

"I don't think I'm really comfortable with this conversation. Can you just get me home now?" Michelle asked.

"Don't worry, I'll have you home safe in no time," Alfred answered as he drove out of the harbor and towards the city.

**As always, please continue~**


	4. Chapter 4

**Disclaimer: I do not own Hetalia **

**Not as big of a response as I'd like so far, but I got over half the story planned out so let's keep going!**

Chapter 3

"Oh, Michelle, what happened? Wait, non, never mind. Just go upstairs and dry off before you catch a cold," Francis asked after opening the front door to find Michelle still wet, being escorted home by Arthur and a policeman.

"Right…good night Francis, thanks for the ride home," Michelle called out before she slinked past Francis and headed towards her bedroom to change clothes and go to sleep.

"Hey, it's that guy from before. Is he you're new client?" Alfred asked after the girl left.

"Yes Alfred, thank you for the ride, and now you can go back to your job," Arthur ordered, ignoring the other's comment.

"Aw, but bugging you seems like a lot more interesting than walking around a creepy old harbor," Alfred pouted.

"I thought it was just 'spooky?'" Arthur asked snidely.

"Spooky, creepy, what's the difference?! Nobody in their right mind would want to willingly be at that place at night." Alfred explained.

"Then go buy a donut or something. Just go."

"So then she's been going to the harbor all these nights? I suppose that would explain why she was wet tonight. But what happened? Did you see the boy she's been meeting with?" Francis asked, bringing their attention back to him.

"Yes, well, I did see the boy briefly, and as for what happened and what I could learn about him…let's just say that I'm now much more interested in this case than when I thought it was a normal one," Arthur answered, only to then say his good-nights and push Alfred outside with him. Once outside, Alfred begrudgingly went back to the harbor as Arthur walked back to his house.

* * *

"Dammit, there's absolutely nothing in these old reports," Arthur mumbled to himself from the desk he claimed in the records room at city hall. After what he had learned the night before, Arthur had decided that it was worth the effort to look up the records of the past deaths in the harbor and near the ferry, finding that there had been many more in the last five years than in the rest of the time. But everything he could find seemed so scattered that it seemed almost useless. Almost.

Of the deaths, all of them were in fact drowning at or near night, which he supposed was something, but was it all that suspicious for people who did not know that area well to accidentally fall and drown? After all, he had heard that the fog which came last night was very common in the last few years…but not in the years before the recent string of deaths. Also according to the reports some of the deceased were not even on the boat when they fell. Along with this, there was little tying the people together, with several of them being from different nationalities, ages, and gender. It was starting to make sense to him now why no one had ever asked him about his before.

Frustrated, he continued to think of any possible links, only to then be distracted by a hyper voice calling out, "Vee, Mr. Kirkland, hi! How did you get here?"

The voice belonged to the mayor's secretary, Feliciano Vargas, who would pass as any other normal, hyper young man if it was not for the alert ears on top of his head the tail from his back. The truth was that he and his two brothers were werewolves which caused a bit of commotion for the city several months ago. Even so, he was able to pacify their natures and currently they were allowed to continue on as if nothing happened with the help of their friends.

"Hello, Feliciano, that volunteer-girl upstairs gave me the key so that I could look through some files. And what brings you down here?" Arthur answered then asked.

"Ludwig asked me to get some stuff on the old harbor," Feliciano answered before chancing a quick look at all of the file cabinets which seemed to make the room feel like a cave with the cluttered desk which only mentally shrunk the room's size. It made part of him wish that he really did not have to look for a couple pesky files.

"Really, then I think you're in luck," Arthur replied, motioning him to the folders on the desk before asking, "So what does the mayor want with the harbor anyways?"

"Um…I don't really remember. He's planning for some new public building or something on part of it or something. Why are you looking at all this anyways?" Feliciano asked.

"I'm looking at some records for a case, but I'm almost done so you can take those folders," Arthur answered, only for him to realize that he missed one record while giving the secretary the file.

Curious, Arthur snatched the file back and began to flip through until he re-found the report. To his surprise, it was the oldest report from the "string" of recent deaths, happening roughly one year before what he originally thought to be the first and almost five years after the last one before that. Like the others it seemed like a justifiable accident; some teenage boy was riding the ferry by himself, goofing around, when the ferry jerked and he fell overboard. However, from the age description, the boy would be the same age as the ghost. But the most interesting part was the boy's picture; especially how similar the boy looked to a certain friend of his.

"Um, Mr. Kirkland? I hope your case goes okay and all, but I gotta have that file back too," Feliciano replied, causing Arthur to look up at him for a moment.

"Yes, thank you. I'm sure it will," Was all Arthur said before returning the folder, replacing the last few folders which the other did not need, and heading on his way to follow the clue he just found.

**As always, please review~**


	5. Chapter 5

**Disclaimer I do not own Hetalia**

Chapter 4

It was only the afternoon as Arthur made his way to his next destination, only for an idea to come to him as he passed through the business district. If the boy died six-years-ago, then what he was dealing with was most likely a ghost; and who better to ask about a ghost than another ghost.

With this in mind Arthur walked into a momentarily deserted part of the district and called out, "Alright, Gilbert, I know that you're here somewhere so come out."

"The fun has arrived~! Thank you very much," the form of a young man called out as he suddenly appear; striking an Elvis Presley pose at the end.

The man's name was Gilbert, and he was a ghost which haunted mainly the business district. Unlike most ghosts, Gilbert was the kind who quickly grew tired of the typical replaying-the-past game but also had such distaste for the afterlife that he always seemed to come back. He was also the kind of person who often grew bored with normalcy, which to Arthur seemed to explain why the ghost enjoyed the hustle and different areas found in the shopping district.

"Trying new intros again?" Arthur asked, not really expecting the ghost to appear to him like that.

"It's that electronics store across the street from Kiku's store. I'm not sure why but for some reason they keep unawesomely playing this one Disney* movie over and over; it's not even a new movie! But enough about that, what do you require the awesome me for?" Gilbert asked, getting over his little rant about a movie in favor of learning why he was needed.

"I was wondering if you could tell me anything about a certain ghost," Arthur answered.

"Depends, which ghost ore you talking about?" Gilbert asked, looking over his almost translucent hand.

"One who would go by the name Emil. He's look roughly 16 and hangs around the harbor. Do you know him?" Arthur clarified.

"Emil, huh…no, that name hasn't graced my awesome ears. He must be new or something. So what'd the kid do to have you out to get him?" Gilbert replied, giving Arthur a curious look.

"Drown about five people in the past six years and almost a sixth last night," Arthur answered bluntly.

"Whoa, really? How has the awesome me not heard about him? Kid's got balls, I gotta give him that."

"This is serious, Gilbert, ghosts aren't supposed to go around trying to drown people. He's also probably the reason for all the weird fog there at night," Arthur scolded.

"Why not," Gilbert pouted jokingly only to then continue, "And you said he can control fog too?"

"Well, I'm assuming so. I mean, last night it acted like the fog appeared right when he wanted to disappear. And weather reports of constantly dense night fog only started shortly after his death," Arthur answered, a little taken back by having Gilbert now floating in his face.

"Wow…well, sucks to be you then. 'Cause if what you say is right then that's one powerful ghost. It might actually be interesting to meet the guy," Gilbert answered, taking a few feet away from Arthur.

"Can you even go to the harbor?" Arthur asked. He had always only seen the other in the shopping district, the idea of Gilbert being able to go elsewhere in the city never crossing his mind before then.

"I can tell you how to get to the harbor if you want," another voice answered, causing the other two to look in that direction to find Michelle.

"Michelle, what are you doing here?" Arthur asked, startled by having her pop up all of a sudden.

"Francis totally over-reacted about what happened last night and told me to meet him at his shop after school today," Michelle answered displeased about having her cousin treat her like a child.

"I wouldn't call being worried about you almost drowning an over-reaction," Arthur commented, biting back the annoyance of having to agree with Francis.

"So then you're the person he was just talking about? ...Cute, apparently this new one has good taste too," Gilbert commented.

Michelle looked closer at Gilbert due to this comment, only to realize that was other was floating a little off the ground. Upon seeing this she paled slightly and said, "Well, I think I should get to Francis before he worries more, bye!"

With this she quickly left, with Arthur then saying his own farewells to the ghost before continuing to his destination. The destination was a small bar which a friend and fellow wizard owned. In the past, Arthur would come there to bounce off case ideas, but this time there was a different reason.

* * *

The bar was relatively empty, a normal occurrence especially during the day-light hours which Arthur did not mind, with the bar being tended by the older brother and co-owner Magnus. Unlike his brother Lukas, Magnus was happily uneducated in the ways of wizardly or the supernatural which often got in the way of running the bar since most of the patrons were not normal, but he would often turn a blind eye to this as long as the business stayed profitable. He was also not the one Arthur was looking for, but he was certain Magnus could answer his questions.

"Hey, Arthur right? You're little friends aren't here yet. You still want your regular?" Magnus asked, already pouring the ale Arthur usually ordered.

"So I see. Actually I was hoping that you could answer a couple questions I have," Arthur explained, taking the glass.

"Oh, what kind of questions?" Magnus asked instantly interested.

"I was looking up the past drowning incidents at the harbor and I saw someone who reminded me of Lukas. Did the two of you use to have a little brother?" Arthur asked, watching as the other's happy face instantly saddened.

"Lukas did…technically he was my little step bro, but…I don't know, he and Lukas just had that kind of connection I couldn't have with him. Hit Luke hard when we heard; he still sometimes talks like the kid will comeback someday. He and his bro, Emil, were hardly a year apart. They did everything together for as long as I knew them; and then he was gone just like that," Magnus responded, growing sadder the more he thought about it.

"I can't even begin to imagine how hard that must be. I know this may seem rude, but what did you do after he died? With the remains I mean?" Arthur asked, not wanted to straight out tell the other that his little brother was an evil spirit and he needed some physical material to hopefully help him eventually fight the ghost.

"There weren't any," Magnus answered shortly, "And he didn't drown. He was a good swimmer and would have just swam to shore or something if he hadn't been drawn into the ferry's motor. Look, I'm not really sure what you wanted to know, but that's all I can tell you right now. So pay for your drink or get out."

Arthur nodded silently to this and paid the price for the drink. He then quickly finished it and left; bumping into Lukas on the way.

***: I also do not own anything with Disney, but props to anyone who can correctly tell me what movie Prussia was quoting XD**

**As always, please review~**


	6. Chapter 6

**Disclaimer: I do not own Hetalia **

Chapter 5

Lukas pulled his hood tighter over his head as he walked up to the old ferry, glaring at the vessel through the fog. He had heard from his brother, Magnus, how Arthur had been snooping around asking about his brother Emil, which caused him to decided to visit and see what was happening. It was night now, and like he assumed the harbor was more or less deserted; which worked out well enough for when looking for someone like Emil. Soon the fog began to clear slightly, followed by a voice from behind him asking, "Lukas, is that really you? It's been forever since you came by."

Lukas turned around to find a teenage-aged, white figure smiling slightly at him. He seemed so lifelike, that it only made sense for people to mistake him as still living.

"So what are you doing here?" the teen, Emil asked.

Lukas gave him a rare smile and said, "I came to see how you're doing. What have you been doing?"

"Hanging around mostly…I did make some new friends since you last came by," Emil answered, thinking over all that had happened since the last time Lukas came to visit, "But I still can't wait until you're able to bring me home with you."

"Right…I'm sorry it's been so long for you to wait. Just know that I am still trying, so wait patiently a little longer," Lukas replied, causing the teen ghost to frown.

"But I'm tired of waiting! I want to finally leave the harbor and see the city up close. I hate being stuck like this, if it wasn't for my friend coming to see me I'd go crazy!" Emil complained.

"Who're these friends you keep talking about?" Lukas asked.

"Just people. I meet them when they come to the city from the ferry, then I make sure that they keep visiting me. But none yet have been able to stay with me longer than a night's time, and after I try to have them they always get taken away for good. Oh! But this new friend of mine might be able to stay with me! She seems different from the others," Emile answered, the face he gave looking like he should start blushing at any moment.

"Emil…did you try to have them stay with you by drowning them?" Lukas asked straight.

"What are you getting at?" Emil asked, looking at his brother crossly, "It's not my fault any of this is happening."

"Emil, in the beginning I asked you to behave yourself and stay hidden. Now that you haven't there's a wizard out looking for ways to probably get rid of you," Lukas explained, angering his brother with each word.

"But you always told me before that I needed to meet new people and stuff. I'm just doing what you told me! And so what if there's some wizard out there, I've seen him and he doesn't look like that big a deal," Emil complained.

"You're not thinking clearly-," Lukas began.

"You look. I'm happy you decided to visit and all, but next time come here tell me that you found away to fix this," Emil snapped, only to then disappear in a poof of fog.

Lukas sighed disappointingly. He only wished that he could fix what happened, but he could not bring back the dead to flesh and bone. It took everything he had to hold him there as a ghost. And now his ghost brother was starting to turn from his loveable brother to something which would need to be pacified soon, but doing so now may destroy Emil. Lukas readily took the blame for what had happened to his brother, he was the one who sent for Emil to come by ferry on the day after all, and it hurt him to see how everything he had tried to fix the situation was blowing up in his face. But he was not going to let Arthur try to fix his mess and hurt his brother. Lukas thought about all of this as he walked back from the harbor and to the bar, not even stopping to say hello to Magnus or the other guests who he knew, only to then lock himself in a study he kept upstairs to look for something, anything which he could use for help.

A phantom watched as Lukas left the harbor and as Emil left to brood on the ferry. He smiled as he watched Emil, thinking that things currently will be a lot more awesome.

**Kind of short :P**

**As always, please review~**


	7. Chapter 7

**Disclaimer: I do not own Hetalia**

**And…more of a filler (sorry)**

Chapter 6

"So it's an evil ghost that Michelle befriended, huh," Francis commented back to Arthur. Arthur had decided that it was only fair to tell Francis what he had learned so far and what his plan were to help the girl. Francis thought about this for a moment, only to then remember something and ask, "Do you even know how to get rid of a ghost?"

"Of course I do. Getting rid of a ghost simply haunting a place is easy enough if you have a stronger will than it," Arthur answered.

"So then is that why you haven't sent back that one ghost who keeps haunting around the shops?" Francis asked, referring to Gilbert. It was not that he was overly annoyed or frightened of Gilbert, the two of them were actually on rather good terms since finding out about eachother, but it did make him wonder why Arthur had not sent him back.

"That a completely different issue all together," Arthur spat out defensively, spitting a bit of his drink in the process, "It's not anything I do wrong, I simply can't help it that he keeps finding ways back out of hell. Besides, he does have his good points when you can keep his mind on track."

"Sure, and do you mind cleaning your spit off my table?" Francis answered not at all convinced. He believed that Arthur was a relatively powerful wizard, that was not the issue, but if Gilbert could find ways back to this city what was to stop this Emil-ghost from coming back and trying to hurt Michelle again?

After allowing the other a moment to clean up the mess, Francis continued, "So how exactly are you going to solve the problem?"

"Still working on that. The issue is that this isn't a normal ghost," Arthur answered bluntly.

"What do you mean by that?" Francis asked a little more concerned now.

"…Nothing, just a gut feeling," Arthur answered after a moment of thought.

"You're not telling me something," Francis pouted at the other. The sound of the front door opening then caused the two to look up and spy Michelle enter the home. Francis then smiled and said, "Hello, Cherie, how was school? I thought you were going to meet me earlier at the store?"

"Sorry, I went out to this restaurant after school with some of my friends. I was gonna call you but I forgot to charge my phone last night," Michelle answered.

"I see, well I suppose that happens, but next time ask to use one of your friend's phones. The City's much bigger than your old home and you never know if a prowler or something is going to come up and try something," Francis scolded lightly.

"Like you're one to talk," Arthur commented flatly, only to get a kick from under the table by the other.

Francis then continued, "So where did you and your friends go?"

"Some Mediterranean place, it was pretty fun. And there was this guy clearing tables who had ears and a tail; it was kinda cute," Michelle answered with a smile.

"Ah, I know the place you're talking about. A good friend of mine works there, you know," Francis commented before he asked, "So then are you still hungry for dinner?"

"Sure, I only really had a snack there, not a meal," Michelle answered.

"Will you be joining us for dinner too? I'd think that your taste buds would appreciate the treat," Francis asked half jokingly.

"No. As it is I have some more things to look up anyways," Arthur answered as he got out of his seat and shrugged his coat on.

"Is he usually around like this? It's kind of weird how I keep bumping into that guy," Michelle commented as she watched the visitor leave the house.

"Non, just recently. It's a bit complicated. Now would you like to help me with dinner?" Francis answered then asked. Michelle agreed to this idea and soon the two of them were in the kitchen acting as if nothing was wrong. This contentment lasted for several hours, only to diminish as the two began to argue over Michelle wanting to go back out and Francis not trusting her to stay away from the harbor.

* * *

Arthur scowled as he looked through one of his magic books, ignoring the growling in his stomach. The muscle would have most likely enjoyed the meal with Francis and Michelle, but his mind had other things to focus on. Namely, making sure that he was prepared for a second encounter with the ghost.

"Hey, Arthur, are you going to make dinner or do I need to go find my own?" a young boy asked as he leaned against the study's doorway. The boy's name was Peter, and he was an ordinary street urchin which Arthur tended to look out for. He was a relatively good child, albeit a bit of a thief, but that trait had come in useful in the past so Arthur kept him around with a close eye. But at the moment Arthur was too preoccupied with his case to bother with the child.

"Arthur? Stop being a jerk and respond to me!" Peter ordered with a pout.

"What do you want, I'm busy," Arthur answered with a sigh.

"It's dinner time. And you're always busy; I've never met someone who says he's busy as much as you do," Peter answered, still pouting, "You haven't eaten either. I can hear your stomach from way over here."

"Ya, ya, just give me five minutes and I'll get something started. Why are you here anyways?" Arthur asked as he quickly skimmed through several pages in a book.

"Well, it's Thursday. You always made me dinner on Thursday in the past," Peter answered. It was not that he was the biggest fan of having to eat what the elder made him, but a cooked meal with some pleasant company was better than having to find something and eat it quickly on the streets.

"Is it? Time really does just fly by doesn't it," Arthur answered as he placed the book back on his desk and headed out the door. As the two walked to the kitchen Arthur continued, "But if I remember, you weren't here last Thursday for dinner."

"Nah, I was at a new friend's house for dinner. But he has some kind of meeting or something tonight with his relatives so I can't have dinner with him," Peter explained.

"A new friend, eh? He's not going to turn out like Sebo and try to sacrifice you is he?" Arthur asked half joking.

"Nah, he's an older friend, like your age. He owns that furniture store a couple blocks from the restaurant Sebo works at."

"Ah, yes, I know the place. Run by the large, scary-looking fellow. And you're not scared of him?"

"I've fought real monsters, so nope!" Peter answered proudly before continuing about how nice the other was. Arthur half listened to this as he finished their simple meal, only to be interrupted by Peter asking "Hey, are you still listening to me?"

"Hmm?"

"I asked what you were studying earlier, jerk," Peter restated with another pout.

"Oh, about ghosts. It's for a new case I have," Arthur answered casually.

"Ghosts? Cool! Can I help?!" Peter asked.

"Well, based on your luck and since it's a ghost who likes to take kids and young adults and drown them in the harbor…no. I don't want you anywhere near that ghost or the harbor until I say it's safe. Now eat your dinner," Arthur ordered.

"That's not fair!" Peter whined, only to then quickly eat his meal in silence. He then left shortly after finishing the food, saying that he wanting to spend time with people who were not as jerk-y.

**So ya…let's see how useful i can make this chapter for later chapters...**

**In the mean time, I promise the next chapter will be more on track with the story**

**As always, please review~**


	8. Chapter 8

**Disclaimer: I do not own Hetalia **

Chapter 7

"You know, Artie, a normal person would ask what you're doing," Alfred commented as he watched Arthur pick through a pile of debris hacked away from the motor of the ferry.

"And what are you doing here? Shouldn't you be at the station?" Arthur asked as he scowled at the stilled motor. He could see how when they moved they could kill someone, but he doubted anything he could use against the ghost was still there.

"Got a call from the security guards that some stranger was looking around. Figured that it was probably you," Alfred explained.

"Ah," was all Arthur could say as he thought over what his next move should be.

"So…maybe you should do something other than stand around looking at boats and water and the crap that comes out of them," Alfred continued. To this Arthur simply watched as the ferry loaded for its noon passengers.

He smiled and stood up, only to then say then, "No problem, it looks like a good day for a boat ride anyways."

"What, you're planning on actually going on the ferry or something?" Alfred asked, giving him a confused luck.

"Yup, you want to join? We may be able to get you over your fear of ghosts," Arthur answered with a slightly sly smile.

"Ah…nah, I think I'll let you deal with this one. Like you said, I should go back to the station and say it was nothing," Alfred answered backing away slowly.

"Alright, alright. Goodbye," Arthur replied as he walked over to buy a ticket for the trip. Within moments, he was aboard the ferry.

The ferry ride across the water was fairly uneventful, with Arthur simply walking around the vessel looking for anything which could prove helpful for him. However, by the time he was almost back to the city he came to the realization that he was certainly at a disadvantage location-wise. He sighed as he came to this conclusion, only to then realize that the air was suddenly moister.

The sun was setting behind him, making the city look like a twinkling mass of dark hues veiled in the fog which suddenly engulfed the ferry. The fog also seemed to serve a duel purpose of buffering the sounds around him, all except for one voice who asked clearly, "What are you doing on my ferry?"

Arthur spun around to find himself face to face with Emil, the ghost frowning upon seeing the other. Emil then continued, "I don't like you. Ever since you took my friend away she hasn't been back and I know that that's your fault."

"We'll obviously someone forgot to tell you that you shouldn't try killing your friends," Arthur replied, placing his hand in easy reach of his pocket spell book.

Emil seemed to notice the movement, only to then say, "Let me guess, you're going to cast another spell like that one you used to get Michelle out of the water? My brother must've been right about you wanting to get rid of me too then."

"You're brother told you to expect me?"

"Ya, but I told him that I wasn't scared of you. I mean, look at your face, you look more afraid than I do!"

Arthur scowled slightly at the comment, only to then say, "And most ghosts when threatened with being sent to hell would be a lot more afraid."

Emil paused at this, giving the other a confused look, only to then ask, "Ghost?"

Before Arthur could answer, a loud blare sounded signaling that they were coming into the harbor. By that time Emil had gotten over his confusion by replacing it with annoyance, for him to then say, "Get off my boat," before disappearing in the fog.

Arthur blinked at the place Emil stood seconds before, confused about how the other reacted when he called him a ghost. He was not given the time to think in peace however, for the deck was quickly filling with the other passengers preparing to leave.

Following the crowd, Arthur began to leave the ferry. Soon he was on the part over the water, only to then feel as if invisible hands roughly push him towards the murky water. Instinctly, Arthur quickly grabbed onto the first solid objects his hands could find, but still ended up falling into the water with a large splash. Several of the startled passengers around him noticed this and called over a police officer watching them leave. Within moments, Arthur was out of the water; completely drench and coughing up a lung full of water.

"Dude, watch where you cough," the officer, Alfred commented as he hovered over the other.

"Oh shut it, I thought you went back to the station," Arthur commented, done coughing and currently trying to spit the salty, grimy taste out of his mouth.

"Man, you were really flailing for dear life right there. You're lucky you didn't accidentally hurt yourself. And I did go back to the station, but in case you didn't realize, it's way past when I usually clock out. So I thought I'd see if you died on the spooky ferry or not," Alfred explained, only to pout as he noticed that the other was not paying attention to him.

Instead Arthur was glaring into the crowd, more specifically, at Emil who was standing in the middle of the crowd seemingly oblivious to the people walking around him. Alfred looked over to see what Arthur saw, only to then ask, "Hey, isn't that the kid from before?"

"Yes. Now if you excuse me I need to have a very serious talk with someone," Arthur answered finitely.

"Ya sure you don't want to change into not wet and smelly clothes first?" Alfred called out as Arthur began to walk towards the harbor's exit, but the other was to angered to hear him.

**As always, please review~**


	9. Chapter 9

**Disclaimer: I do not own Hetalia**

Chapter 8

Arthur stomped his way to Lukas' and Magnus' bar, only to then stalk into the bar and glare at anyone who looked at him. He scanned the people there for a moment before he spotted Lukas, who was busy listening to Magnus friendly argue with a taller customer in glasses. Too annoyed to bother about interrupting the conversation, Arthur walked over to them and asked for Lukas to join him in a different room.

"Oh, are you a friend of Lukas'?" a smaller customer sitting also in the group asked.

"Ya know Nor, ya may want to pick friends who don't bathe in icky smelling areas," Magnus commented as the rank of dried, filthy water wafted off Arthur.

"You've been at the harbor," Lukas commented to Arthur, ignore the last too comments.

"Yes, and now I need to talk to you about who I met up with there," Arthur growled.

"And why do you need me?" Lukas asked coyly.

"Alright, I'll say it. Your brother is a bloody nuisance and needs to be put a stop to," Arthur answered, confusing the other three.

"Huh? What did I ever do to you?" Magnus asked confused.

"It's not his fault that you got wet when surrounded by water," Lukas replied yet did not keep Arthur's gaze.

"Okay, could you two maybe tells us what's going on?" the smaller customer asked.

"None of your business!" both Lukas and Arthur snapped back at all three listeners.

"You told him I was going to come for him," Arthur commented quietly.

"Someone had to warn him," Lukas replied.

"He's killed six people! It no longer matters if he was your brother, he has become a monster! Why would you try to protect something like that?" Arthur asked annoyed that his friend could not see that.

"Don't you dare call him a monster again," Luka replied darkly, a luminous spark in his eye daring Arthur to find out what awaited him if he said that word again. It was enough to calm Arthur's anger and cause him to take a hesitant step back. Lukas then continued, "And now if you're done bad-talking my brother I want you out of my bar."

"I just don't understand," Arthur began tenitively.

"Simple. OUT!" Lukas ordered before raising his hand and quickly reciting a spell to create a large enough wind to force Arthur off his feet and out the door. Lukas followed Arthur outside only to then call up a rainstorm on the other before slamming the doors shut.

Arthur sighed once more as the cold, magically placed rain re-soaked his already damp clothes. It was normal for wizards to specialize in different types of spells, and similar to how Arthur seemed to have a knack for wind-based spells, Lukas was best with weather-based spells. He vaguely remembered Lukas explaining a theory of how spell specialization ran in families, but Arthur did not put too much thought into that. Instead, he was usually more annoyed at how whenever Lukas used such kinds of spells he was usually the one to end up regretting it. Tired of wearing wet clothes, Arthur decided to get off the street and duck into the shelter of storefront canopies most of the way home.

* * *

After hearing about this Emil-ghost, Gilbert had spent the last few days interested in the kid. Due to this interest, he had watched him for some time, but it was not until after seeing him push Arthur off a platform that Gilbert felt it was a good time to visit with him.

"Hey! Kid!" Gilbert called out after the crowd dispersed for the night.

Emil looked at Gilbert annoyed due to the nick-name, only for his eyes to widen upon seeing Gilbert seemingly fly up to him. At last Emil asked, "Who are you and how can you do that?"

"Because I'm a ghost, duh. What, don't tell me you can't float too," Gilbert answered with an eye-roll.

"Of course I can't! Why would you think I could?" Emil asked indignantly.

"Ah, because who ever heard of a ghost so unawesome that it can't float," Gilbert answered.

Emil disdainfully pouted at this and asked, "You're the second person who told me I'm a ghost. What's wrong with you guys?"

"Take it from my awesome experience: You are by definitely a ghost."

"No, I'm not!" Emil persisted.

"Oh? Then what the hell are you?" Gilbert asked with a smirk. He had met several other ghosts in his time, but this was the first time he got to break the news to one that it was dead.

"I-I'm human. I'm just stuck here because of my brother," Emil answered weakly.

"Really. And when was the last time you ate something, or drank something, or even just slept?" Gilbert persisted.

"I…I don't know, I can't remember," Emil answered, visibly starting to worry. He never thought that he was dead or a ghost, Lukas had simply told him that he couldn't leave for a little bit but that soon things would be alright. But after having these questions asked, he began to realize just how bizarre things about him were.

"Just accept it and you'll have a much happier afterlife. That is assuming you don't get tied up with the whole Hell place like what Arthur's probably hoping will happen to you," Gilbert answered casually.

Emil stayed in silent thought for several moments, only to then ask, "So then, if I'm a ghost how come no one ever told me?"

"You mean your brother? Well from what I've heard he was hoping to bring you back to actually living. But it's been taking him what, six years so far? And the awesome me has never heard of such a thing actually happening. Especially if I'm right in assuming you don't have a body anymore," Gilbert continued casually.

"No, I…I don't really remember what happened…but I don't think I do," Emil answered as he slumped into a sitting position on the ground. This was simply a lot of information to take in at once, and he was having a hard time doing so.

"Happens. I hardly remember my actual death, but I remember what I was doing the day before and before that. Some of us just forget and others can't seem to stop from remembering," Gilbert answered with a shrug.

"So then…I'm stuck here? Forever? But Lukas said…What am I going to do now?" Emil asked more to himself than anyone else.

"Nah, you're not stuck here forever. Remember, you have a wizard who wants you gone, so he could send you to hell if you want; not that I would recommend it. And how the awesome me has heard it you've been having a pretty awesome afterlife," Gilbert answered.

Emil perked slightly at this, only to then ask Gilbert what he does. In response, Gilbert answered, "Whatever the awesome me feels like doing. It helps that I haunt the shopping district close to here; there's a lot of awesome things there to fill my time. But now that I say that, I think that I should be getting back. It's taken a lot of my energy to stay here for this long."

"Wait, you're going back already?" Emil asked in a concerned manner. He just had his life turned upside down, and would have liked for the other to stay and help him work this out.

"Can't, if ya stay out of your haunting-grounds for too long it'll sap the energy right out of you and you'll end up going to hell due to exhaustion," Gilbert replied before he disappeared, heading back to his own place and leaving Emil alone.

**As always, please review~**


	10. Chapter 10

**Disclaimer: I do not own Hetalia **

Chapter 9

It was well after school and Michelle had to rush home before Francis worried too much, but her mind was more distracted on other things to worry about that. It had been several days since she last met with the mysterious boy at the dock, and part of her wondered how he was fairing. Due to this wonder, she decided to take a quick detour and check on him; even though it was only dusk.

Once she reached the entrance of the harbor, she was shocked to find her friend also there, staring worryingly at the firm ground right ahead of him. Michelle smiled when she saw him and ran towards him. As she ran she called out, "Hey, you're somewhere new! How have you been?!"

Emil smiled up relieved when he saw Michelle stop in front of him; causing her to smile back. He then exclaimed, "Michelle, you came back! I was starting to think that that wizard made it so you couldn't come see me?"

"Wizard? Anyways, what have you been up to?" Michelle wondered but instead tried to change the conversation.

He fell silent at this, causing Michelle to simply look him over. A thought then came to her, causing her to ask, "Hey, what's your name anyways?"

"My name? It's Emil," Emil answered. It had certainly been some time since anyone asked him that, a ghost or not.

"Emil? That's a cool name. I know! It's getting close to dinner time so why don't ya come to my cousin's and my place? You look like you could use a good meal," Michelle asked, trying to be convincing.

"I do? Um, actually I…can't. I know! Why don't you just stay here with me? Just like you said you would last time," Emil answered pleadingly.

"Stay?" Michelle asked as a flicker remnant from the past spell came to her eyes.

"Ya! Stay here with-,"

"Hey you two! Don't kids these days have anything better to do than meet here? Get to your own homes before I call you in for trespassing!" A voice called out, causing the two to look and see that they had caught the attention of the manager of the harbor.

"Oh, okay, I'll just be going then. You sure you don't want to come too?" Michelle answered, the flicker of the spell gone.

"No…I, ah, can't," Emil answered.

"What do ya mean you can't?" both Michelle and the manager asked at the same time.

"I'm a ghost okay, I just can't!"

"A…ghost?" Michelle asked uncertainly.

"You're not a ghost! You're not floating or anything," the manager answered sternly as he circled the boy.

"Well, apparently that's something you get taught and no one's bothered to tell me how," Emil answered embarrassed.

"Emil?" Michelle began unsure as she reached out to grab at him.

"Hey!" Emil began, moving away as Michelle's hand moved through his wrist. Michelle paled as she pulled her now frigid and damp hand away, confused more by how it went through her friend.

By now Emil was on the defensive, causing him to glare at the manager and say, "You can't make me leave," then turning back to Michelle and saying, "And I refuse to let you leave me!"

With this said, a thick bank of fog appeared, causing the manager to lose sight of the teens and for Michelle to get lost in it. She tried running the few feet out of the fog and the harbor, but before she knew how it happened she found herself standing next to the ferry with Emil standing next to her. He then muttered, "I'm not going to let some stupid humans stop me from having my friend over," before Michelle suddenly fainted.

* * *

"Hey, Artie? You free right now?" Alfred asked after hearing Arthur answer the phone.

"At the moment yes, why?" Arthur asked cautiously.

"I just really need you right now," Alfred answered bluntly, catching Arthur surprised.

"…What?" Arthur asked confused by what was happening.

"You heard me, I really need you. Right now! Come on, it's really important!"

"Do I want to know why you need me?"

"It's for work okay! The manager of the harbor called us saying that there were some trespassers which sounded like that ghost-kid from before, and now they want me to go and look into it," Alfred complained.

"Okay…and is this the first time the police have gotten called about this kid? He must be slipping, or becoming unstable. Good luck with your job," Arthur answered casually.

"What do you mean good luck?! I thought this ghost stuff was your responsibility, so you gotta come out and help me with it!"

"If a ghost is going unstable, the last thing you want to do is mess with it. So just go buy a burger and lie to your boss or something. Or…wait. Did the manager say 'trespassers?' as in plural?"

"Ah, ya, why?"

"Hold on one second while I call someone else quick," Arthur answered, only to then quickly call Francis' number.

"Bonjour, who is it?" Francis asked cheerfully.

"Hello, Francis? I need a concise answer: is Michelle at home right now," Arthur requested.

"Arthur? Non, Michelle hasn't come home yet. Why? Hoping to have another meal with her?" Francis answered light-heartedly, but Arthur could tell from the tone that the other thought something was wrong.

"Dammit, I told her to stay away from there," Arthur scowled to himself, causing Francis to grow more on edge.

"Away from there? Wait, where is she? Tell me what is happening!"

"Look Francis, just stay at your house and if she comes home before I arrive call me right away got it!" Arthur ordered only to then hang up before Francis could ask any more questions. He then looked back at the screen reminding him that Alfred was still on hold. With a sigh, he reattached to Alfred and said, "Alright Alfred, it looks like I'll go to the harbor with you. Now come pick me up at my house."

"Wait, I thought you said that I should go get dinner instead?" Alfred asked confused as he stopped at the ordering station of a drive-thru.

"Well that's changed so pick me up NOW!" Arthur ordered as he heard the muffled sound of the electronic waitress ask what Alfred wanted.

"Alright, alright, just give me a couple minutes to get there. Cars can't teleport ya know," Alfred muttered as he picked up his food and exited the parking lot. Several minutes later, he reached Arthur's house to find the other impatiently waiting outside.

"French fries?" Alfred offered as Arthur entered the passenger side.

"Just start driving," Arthur answered, pushing the fast food out of his face. His mind was too focused on what was waiting for them to worry about a hunk of fried potato.

**As always, please review~**


	11. Chapter 11

**Disclaimer: I do not own Hetalia **

**I honestly did not mean for that long a delay…**

Chapter 10

"Okay, just so I understand, you think that that Michelle-girl from a couple days ago sneaked out again to go to the harbor," Alfred began as he parked just inside the harbor property.

"I wouldn't really call it 'sneaked out' since she never made it home, but yes," Arthur corrected as they exited the car.

"Right. And now you think that she's here with some ghost who's going crazy," Alfred continued skeptically.

"Devolving. As in he's more dangerous now and may hurt her," Arthur once again corrected.

"Ya, like I said, going crazy. So what makes a ghost go crazy anyways?" Alfred responded then asked as they walked towards the boats.

"Oh, several things can. Getting bored, being threatened, and in this case probably realizing that he's a ghost," Arthur answered casually.

"How do you not realize your dead?" Alfred stopped abruptly as he asked. In his mind, the idea that you didn't eat, went through objects, was always the same age and could float seemed like a lot of red flags about something being off.

"I don't understand it either, but it's actually a lot more common than you'd think. Or at least that's what the books say."

"What, that stupid ghost that follows you around all the time never gave you a straight answer on that?"

"And why would I even ask him that?"

"And who are you calling stupid?! I think you mean Awesome!" A new voice sounded, causing the two to turn behind them only to find Gilbert.

"What the hell are you doing here?!" Alfred shrieked out only to then be quieted down by Arthur.

"Yes, Gilbert, what are you doing here?" Arthur re-asked quieter.

"I overheard Francis' conversation with you and thought that checking about Emil would be interesting," Gilbert answered.

"Emil?" Alfred asked confused.

"The name of the ghost," Arthur answered shortly.

"And since I am here I suppose if you ask nicely I may help you find that little cutie you called about," Gilbert continued.

"Really. Like the last time you decided to help us only to decide not to at the last minute? And why would I need your help anyways?" Arthur asked.

"Because lets use your little, unawesome brains for a minute. If Emil notices a wizard wanting to kill him or some police officer he knows is affiliated with you appears, what do you think he'll do?" Gilbert asked slowly.

"Go even crazier?" Alfred asked.

"I told you he's devolving, not going crazy you twit!" Arthur scolded, only to then concede that Alfred was correct nonetheless.

"Right, but do you think he'll freak out if he sees his awesome new ghost friend appear?" Gilbert continued with a sly smile, only to then watch as the two shook their heads. He then went on, "Catch my drift?"

"And I ask again, why should we trust you?" Arthur asked shortly.

"Well what else are you going to do? Go in guns-a-blazing?" Gilbert rebutted as calmly as ever.

"I may not know much about devolving, or going crazy, or whatever, but I'm pretty sure I remember them saying at the academy that that's not what you should do," Alfred answered.

"Right, and what should you do?" Gilbert persisted.

Alfred began to think, only to then say, "Try to get the perp's trust, or at least distract him, if he's got a hostage get him or her away from the bad guy…Then hit him before he knows what happened when given the go to."

"And after saying all that don't you think that my awesome plan sounds pretty good?" Gilbert asked with a smirk.

Alfred thought about this a moment more, before turning back to Arthur and saying, "You know, the more I think about it the more he kind of has a point."

"See? Now what will you give me if I help you?" Gilbert asked.

Arthur and Alfred shared a glance, before Arthur nodded and said, "If you want to try you can, but don't expect any favors in return."

"Not even a thank you?" Gilbert pouted, only to then sigh and say, "You guys are so unawesome if you can't even show a little gratitude. But fine, I guess I can be awesome enough to look past that and help you."

"Thank you Gilbert," Arthur answered.

"Ya, ya, let's just see what I can do," Gilbert answered before vanishing.

As they waited, a call came from Alfred's car, the person wondering if he finished his task. Alfred explained the situation as best he could, saying that he was still investigating, before the two of them continued to talk for some time. After what felt far too long for the conversation, Alfred returned to where Arthur sat in thought.

"Any sign from that ghost friend of yours?"Alfred asked as he sat.

"Not yet. You know, I don't remember the harbor being this busy the last couple times I was here at this time. Is there some kind of event happening tonight?" Arthur replied.

"According to what I just heard we're supposed to hurry this up and leave so that we don't get in the way of construction."

"Construction?"

"Ya, apparently the mayor decided to retire one of the boats and now they're doing some construction. Wonder why this started all of a sudden," Alfred answered. The two of them then sat in silence some more as they waited for Gilbert, only to eventually grow bored and head towards the ferry.

* * *

Michelle awoke some time after discovering about Emil, only to find herself in a dark room; the sun long since set. Cautiously, she looked around the dark room before heading towards the glimmer of light coming from the doorway. From the doorway came a hall, and following the hall she came to the ferry's deck. She gasped quietly when she saw Emil slouching exhausted against the ferry's flimsy rail. Her instinct was to run up and check on him, but her senses told her to stay away and be fearful of him. Before she could do anything, however, another figure appeared.

"Hey Kiddo, I thought I told you last time not to work yourself up too much. Now look at you!" The figure began.

"Gilbert? What are you doing here?" Emil asked; his words slurred due to exhaustion.

"You moved someone here physically, didn't you. Sigh, probably should have told you not to do that," Gilbert said in a slightly disappointed way. This could not fully mask the entertained look in his eyes, however. after all, even he-who he felt was a relatively powerful ghost-would not dare strain himself by handling a living human.

"That stupid guard would have taken her from me. I'm not letting those idiots take more people from me," Emil answered with a pout.

"You have some really unawesome abandonment issues, don't ya. Anyways, where is this little friend of yours?"

"Why do you care?"

"Fine, don't be awesome and let your only two friends meet."

Michelle had heard enough for that moment, and was about to interrupt the two when she felt someone grab hold of her shoulder and ask, "Stay quiet for a minute and I'll get you out of this."

She stayed quiet but spun around to see who it was, only to become face to face with Arthur's silhouette. Before she could react anymore, Alfred whispered, "Hey, that ghost-kid looks in pretty bad shape. Do you think you could get rid of him now?"

"What? No!" Michelle blurted out. She may have been startled by learning this about Emil and him capturing her, but she still felt that he may be good.

Upon hearing her blurt this out, both Gilbert and Emil looked to the three listeners. Before anyone did anything, the ship suddenly began to move followed by a commotion from below. Curious, Alfred, Arthur, and Michelle rushed/stumbled onto the deck to see a group of men pulling the ferry onto shore.

"W-what are they doing?!" Emil bleated out, his pale face growing even paler.

"I was told that one of the ships were going to be retired. Guess this is the one," Alfred answered dully, only to then scrunch up his eyes when a beam of light landed on the five of them.

"What do you kids think you're doing up there?! Get off there now!" the crew's supervisor barked out.

**As always, please review~**


	12. Chapter 12

**Disclaimer: I do not own Hetalia **

Chapter 11

"W-what are they doing?!" Emil bleated out, his pale face growing even paler.

"I was told that some of the ships were going to be retired. Guess this is one of them," Alfred answered dully, only to then scrunch up his eyes when a beam of light landed on the five of them.

"What do you kids think you're doing up there?! Get off there now!" the crew's supervisor barked out.

The group stared down at the annoyed man for a moment before he ordered them down again. After a moment to register the request, Gilbert looked to the rest and said, "Well, I think this is a good enough time for me to go," before vanishing from the group.

"Okay, there goes one of us. I guess we should be going down there. Don't worry Michelle, I won't let that guy hurt you," Alfred commented. With this he began to lead Arthur and Michelle out of the ferry; Emil following from behind at a safe distance.

"And what do you kids think you're doing here at this time. The harbor's closed!" the supervisor asked when the four reached the ground near him.

"Well, you see, he and I are actually here on business and we came to pick her up on request from her guardian," Arthur explained.

"What kind of business is that?" the supervisor asked critically.

"Um…well we're investigating a series of deaths near this ferry?" Alfred asked more than answered.

"Don't worry, we're professionals. And we'll be going," Arthur continued.

"Alright then," the supervisor replied as he watched Alfred, Arthur, and Michelle leave, only to then look towards the docks and comment, "And what about you boy? What are you doing here?"

"I'm always here? Wh-what are you doing to the ferry? Why're you taking it onto land?" Emil asked.

"Mayor's orders. He wanted us to retire and move the ferry onto land right by the harbor's edge," the supervisor explained.

"What? But you can't do that! If the Ferry's put on land-and I can't go on land…this can't be happening," Emil complained, beginning to freak out as fog suddenly appeared.

"Emil, what's-," Michelle began to ask as she took a step near him. Arthur stopped her progression, however, and told her to stay away from him for her own good.

While this happened, Emil's head began to spin and he looked as if gone wild with confusion and anger as the weather suddenly changed into an all-out storm. As this happened, strong winds and rain began to rage against the docks; causing the supervisor to retreat to the ferry and the other workers.

"What's happenings?!" Alfred called out as he tried keeping the water out of his eyes.

"I already told you, he's devolving and now has snapped," Arthur yelled back. He knew that Alfred was only a couple feet from him, but the noise of the storm was too loud for him to hear any other communication other than a yell. He then continued, "Take Michelle back to the car and out of the harbor!"

Alfred began to ask if he was sure, but Arthur stopped him by giving his order again. With this Alfred began to lead the girl out, only for Emil to notice this and become angrier. In his rage, it began to hail; causing the already startled girl to scream as the hunks of ice landed on them.

"Emil! Stop!" Michelle called out.

Michelle's voice seemed to cut through the chaos of the storm like a knife, bringing Emil back from his rage and causing him to look at her worringly. Arthur refused to let this opportunity pass by, and used the moment of confusion to whip out his pocket spell book and flip to the dog-eared page; only to then quickly begin casting the spell. Half-way through the spell, Emil realized what was happening as his body began to become more and more translucent.

"No!" Emil called out as he looked at the others, a look of misery on his face, but it was too late. A couple seconds later and Arthur was finished with his spell, and the storm and Emil were gone as if it never happened.

* * *

"You know, Artie, I've been thinking about how you got rid of that ghost," Alfred began. A couple days had passed since the incident at the harbor, and now the two had been called in to debrief what happened to the Mayor. They were meeting the mayor at the harbor, and personally Arthur was hoping that this would be the last time he had to go there in a while. After making sure that Arthur was listening to him, Alfred continued, "Ghost or not, I think you were being a little hard on the guy. I mean, he was just trying to make friends."

"He killed five people and almost six 'trying to make friends,'" Arthur remarked bluntly, only to then continue, "But as it is, you're now the third person to tell me the same thing."

"Who're the other two?" Alfred asked curiously.

"Well, apparently Michelle felt bad about how things turned out with her friend the ghost, and Emil's brother won't even talk to me now after hearing what I did to him," Arthur explained.

"That sucks…well, here we are and I see the mayor and Feli up ahead so let's hurry this up."

With this said, the two walked up to meet with the mayor. The mayor was a young, strong man called Ludwig Beilschmit, who so far in his short run at the job has held some sort of role in now two supernatural events. He looked between Arthur and the now ruined ferry. Once Arthur was done explaining what happened, Ludwig asked, "I understand that what you did was for the good of the area, but did you have to confront the ghost in a way which ended up destroying something I just named a historic monument?"

"Historic monument? That piece of junk wasn't that important, was it?" Alfred asked.

"Ya, it was. One of my campaign sponsors asked me to make it a historic monument after bringing it to my attention of its history and that it would be better for the community if it was retired. My plan was originally to have it restored and try using it as an attraction to help revive this section of the city," Ludwig answered, looking at the now heavily damaged vessel and feeling a headache from it form.

"Your sponsor wouldn't happen to own a bar would he?" Arthur asked carefully.

"Ya, ya, I remember! He's the one who owns a bar with his big brother," Feliciano answered in Ludwig's place.

"Do you think you know him?" Ludwig asked.

"Yes, I believe I do. So now what are you going to do with the ferry?" Arthur answered then asked.

"Fix it!" a new voice then demanded, causing the four to look towards the ferry only to find Emil standing next to it.

"How the bloody hell did you get back here?! You should be in Hell or whatever afterlife you belong in!" Arthur demanded.

"Well that Gilbert guy was right-the afterlife does suck; especially when you don't know anyone there. And it's actually pretty easy to get out of there; especially when you have a wizard for a brother," Emil explained.

"So Lukas brought you back, is that it," Arthur clarified, woefully unamused.

"Ya, I asked him to. I can't rest easy down there when everyone and everything I care about is up here! So he brought me back under the idea that I behave myself this time," Emil continued.

"So then this must be the ghost…Hello Emil…," Ludwig began cautiously, not sure how to respond to a ghost resident.

"So you're the person who tried to take my boat onto land, right?" Emil asked upon turning his attention to Ludwig.

"Yes, to have it restored," Ludwig answered.

"So you're going to fix it?" Emil continued asking.

"Yes, that was and still is the plan…as long as nothing else tries to destroy it," Ludwig replied, causing Emil to smile slightly.

"Leave that to me. When I was in the afterlife I was thinking that purposefully haunting a place may be fun, and that way I can make sure that you get it fixed properly. Then hopefully Gilbert will come back and teach me how to float so people stop saying that I'm not a real ghost!" Emil answered, only to then vanish.

"I thought you said he wasn't able to go on land. How's he supposed to do all that now? Alfred asked.

"I'm still tied to the ferry, stupid! So even if the ferry is on land, I can still be there is I'm with the boat," Emil answered suddenly re-appearing in front of Alfred only to once again vanish and head towards the ferry to rest.

"He's not going to leave, is he?" Ludwig asked aloud.

"No, something tells me we just got another bored, permanent ghost resident for this city," Arthur answered, dismayed.

"Wow, this city sure has been getting pretty exciting recently, it makes ya wonder what's going to happen next time," Feliciano replied.

"What's this look like, a television program?" Arthur asked.

"Well what's been happening is kinda like we're living some kind of fiction story," Feliciano reasoned.

"Then let's wrap this up cause the hero wants lunch!" Alfred replied while turning for his car.

"And I still need to collect my payment from Francis," Arthur continued as he also turned away.

"And I should talk to that supervisor about his current plan for restoration work," Ludwig answered as he began to walk away from the others.

"Hey, wait, where are you all going? Wait for me Ludwig!" Feliciano called out in concern upon realizing that he was left behind, only to end with him chasing after them.

**And…end!**

**Ya, not as much love as I would have liked for the story, but they can't all be popular.**

**Anyways, thank you to all who read, favorited, subscribed, and reviewed this story!**

**As always please review~**


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